Saudis settle SR1tr in dues for public, private companies in 2020

Abu Dhabi: The Saudi Ministry of Finance revealed that it settled all the dues of the public and private companies for 2020, local media reported.

The ministry added in a recent report that it received 1.036 million payment orders, worth SR1.016 trillion from public and private companies during the past year, which were all settled.

The report estimated the public sector’s dues at 764.62 billion riyals, while the private sector claims amounted to 251.77 billion riyals.

The report indicated that 73 per cent of the total orders, amounting to 183.77 billion riyals were disbursed within only 15 days from the date of receiving payment orders, while 19 per cent of the claims or 49.16 billion riyals were disbursed during a period ranging between 16-30 days.

Seven per cent of payment orders were disbursed during a period ranging from 31 to 45 days, and the value of the amounts disbursed in that period was 16.01 billion riyals, while 1 per cent of the dues or 2.84 billion riyals was disbursed more that 45 days of the claim, the report said.

The delay of the disbursement was due to suspension by court rulings or being withheld by statutory decisions, the report said.

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, Saudi Arabia has focused on funding the health sector, including doubling the number of intensive care units in the first three or four months of the outbreak.

The size of Saudi Arabia’s fiscal stimulus is 3.4-3.5 per cent of the gross domestic product, well below the G-20’s average of 9 per cent.

But the Saudi economy shrank by only 3.8 per cent in 2020, less than the G20’s average of 6.1 per cent.